Steelers wide receiver George Pickens’ tenure with the team is short-lived, as stated by senior NFL reporter James Palmer in an article for Bleacher Report (video link). Palmer anticipates that Pickens will leave Pittsburgh before the 2026 season, either due to a trade before the 2025 deadline or because the Steelers let the contract-year player leave in free agency next March.
Given the recent trade reports concerning Pickens – in which it was indicated that Pittsburgh was both initiating and receiving calls about the Georgia player – Palmer’s report is not unexpected. Concerns regarding Pickens’ maturity have followed him both prior to and following his professional debut, and Palmer states that “things have not gone well behind the scenes at all” between Pickens and the organization.
Apart from any off-field concerns the Steelers may have with the 24-year-old deep threat, parting ways with him would align with their typical approach. As our Sam Robinson pointed out during the pre-draft trade discussions involving Pickens, Pittsburgh usually grants one significant contract to its wide receiver group while supplementing the remainder of the depth chart with affordable talent. Given that the Steelers allocated considerable draft resources and a lucrative contract to their recent trade acquisition D.K. Metcalf, it seems logical that they would part ways with Pickens before he secures his second NFL contract.
Nonetheless, the team intends to strive for a playoff spot in 2025, and despite any issues Pickens may cause in the locker room, he has delivered performances that meet expectations given the subpar quarterback play in his initial three years in the NFL. He topped the league with an 18.1 yards-per-catch average in 2023, completing a 63/1,140/5 season, and he probably would have neared or surpassed the 1,100-yard milestone again in 2024 had he not been sidelined for three games because of injury (the only three games he has ever missed in his career).
Moreover, while Palmer acknowledges that the Steelers conducted extensive research on the 2025 college wide receiver class, they did not utilize any of their seven picks on a pass catcher. Despite the recent signing of Robert Woods, Pittsburgh’s wide receiver group would face a significant setback if Pickens were to be traded at this time.
Palmer does not foresee a trade occurring soon, instead indicating that the November deadline is a more probable timeframe for this type of arrangement.
If they retain him within the team until the beginning of the 2025 season, the Steelers would likely only trade Pickens prior to the deadline if they are no longer in the playoff race.
Otherwise, it would appear that the team intends to keep him until the year’s conclusion and possibly set itself up for a compensatory pick if he ultimately signs with another team in 2026.